Thatís Kawhi Leonard and his 45 points that led the Raptors to a 108-95 win against the Philadelphia 76ers Saturday night here in Toronto.

A fast-paced physical game that featured plenty of oohs and ahhs and never a dull moment as the Jimmy Butler-Joel Embiid-Ben Simmons-led Sixers proved no match for Leonard & his Raptors.

Philly wasnít necessarily chopped liver as they did have more balanced scoring through their starters, unlike Toronto that relied heavily on Leonard for the honours. Pascal Siakamís 29 points were also instrumental in pacing Toronto. Good support in the form of rebounding, passing, & transitioning came from the likes of Lowry, Gasol, Green, Ibaka, VanVleet, and of course, Siakam.

The Philadelphia 76ers, namely Jimmy Butler, did some figuring out and came out 94-89 winners over the Raptors.

Talk about game strategy. The Sixers decided to double team Leonard as much as they could, to effectively keep the ball out of Kawhiís hands. While that worked in part (Leonard still ended up with 35 points, more than any of his teammates on the night), it was really more a case of Torontoís bad shooting at the 3 field goal percentage and the bench which didnít provide for itís usual support.

Excellent rebounding on the part of Philadelphia (Butler led with 11) and good transitioning & aggressiveness in the paint by both Butler and Embiid cemented the Sixers advantage throughout, leaving the Raptors trailing every now and then.

Torontoís defence again made good at keeping the oppositionís score under 100 but was painful to watch the too many fouls taken (once again placing the officiating in question), and all the missed shots. Besides Leonard, Siakam had 21 points and Lowry 20. Also the Raptors rebounding was next to non existent in this game, and...

Thatís right. Joel Embiid made a mockery and nearly whacked the Raptors out of extinction at the Wells Fargo Center last night, in leading the Sixers to a resounding 116-95 victory over that lowly & confused Toronto team.

Talk about being disappointed, no, more like disgusted. The Sixers, with legendary Philadelphian Allen Iverson in the stands, played like a team possessed led in large part by Embiid & Butler, but more so Embiid who finished the night with 33 points & 10 rebounds. He also made the Raptors D ó namely Marc Gasol ó twitch and burn in the process. A rather defining statement and one that may prove Torontoís undoing unless coach Nick Nurse figures out this chess match.

Of course, not all was doom and gloom for the Raptors. Leonard, who led the team in points with 33, and was easily Torontoís best player along with the oft-fouled Siakam who had 20 pts. Leonard kept the team close on the scoreboard until the Sixers dynamic duo of Butler & Embiid unleashed their venom. Embiidís monstrous dunk from in close was a source of embarrassment for a team that seemed to have just wilted.

When your Kyle Lowry and co., doesnít give your star player any support, you know your team is in a heap of trouble trying to keep itís chin above water, so to speak.

Itís up to the Raptors to get it right, make the necessary changes and go out there and win that pivotal Game 4, which goes Sunday in Philly.

Joel Embiid scored 33 PTS and grabbed 10 REB in 28 minutes-played in the @sixers Game 3 win, becoming the first player since Kevin McHale (1990) to record 30+ PTS and 10+ REB in under 30 minutes-played in a playoff game. @EliasSportspic.twitter.com/edSNiU0OIY

Led by Kawhi Leonardís 39 points & 14 rebounds, the Raptors tamed the Sixers where they needed to and sharpened their three point shooting including PITP percentage (points in the paint), for a 101-96 win here in Game 4.

Compared to Game 3 in which the Sixers practically ran away with the win over a lame Toronto squad, the Raptors not only limited Philly stars Butler & Embiid, but also combined for a much improved team effort in the rebounding & assists dept.

Other Raptor contributors were Marc Gasol, who probably had one of his best game of the series, with 16 pts., 5 rebs., & 3 assists, Kyle Lowry with 14 pts., & 7 assists, Serge Ibaka with 12 pts., 9 rebs., 3 blks., and Danny Green with 11 pts.